The CEECD and SKC-ECD team congratulates Ms. Boyd for this award and takes this opportunity to thank her for her involvement and tireless devotion in making early childhood a priority at the federal, provincial and community level.

As a Francophile, Ms Boyd has demonstrated a keen interest in Manitoba’s Francophone community. She has worked tirelessly to support the community’s projects and has initiated many programs and research projects including:the Roots of Empathy program, the PAX Good Behaviour Game, the Triple P–Positive Parenting Program, the Centres de la petite enfance et de la famille (CPEF) and the Early Development Instrument. These initiatives have been made available in French thanks to Ms Boyd’s efforts.

Ms Boyd has played a leadership role with government departments and Cabinet in supporting the CPEF initiative. Her conviction regarding the benefits of an evidence-based decision-making process has led to research and studies resulting in concrete data respecting Francophone early childhood in Manitoba. She sits on the steering committee of the Coalition francophone de la petite enfance in order to put forward within government the needs of the Franco-Manitoban community and the importance of investing in this sector.

The Prix Ronald-Duhamel – Ronald Duhamel Award is a joint initiative of the Société franco-manitobaine (SFM), the Manitoba Federal Council, the Manitoba Francophone Affairs Secretariat, and the Manitoba Association of Bilingual Municipalities (AMBM). It was created to recognize an employee or a group of employees of a governmental or quasi-governmental body at the federal, provincial or municipal level for distinguished service to Manitoba’s Francophone community.

Officially launched in March 2005, the Award was named in honour of Ronald Duhamel and his significant contributions, first as a senior public servant in the Government of Manitoba and then as a federal MP, minister and senator. During his career, Mr. Duhamel did much to promote the cultural, educational, economic and political development of the Franco-Manitoban community. He also supported a number of minority Francophone community initiatives at the national level.

According to Gordon Miles, Co-Chair of the Manitoba Federal Council, “the very fact that the award is the result of a federal-provincial-community initiative sends out a very strong message as to the commitment of the three partners to work in close cooperation in order to achieve common objectives for the benefit of the Francophone community in Manitoba”.

"We wish to congratulate Ms Boyd on the exceptional energy she has invested in ensuring that the community’s needs are recognized, and on her skills in developing solutions that enrich our Francophone communities,” commented Daniel Boucher, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Société franco-manitobaine. “Thanks to her innovative spirit, Ms Boyd has been able to implement programs that are now available in French.”

"The testimonials received from community and government partners attest to the special place that Ms Boyd has forged within the Manitoba Francophonie,” emphasized Mélanie Cwikla, Executive Director of the Francophone Affairs Secretariat. “I'm delighted that Ms Boyd is being recognized in this way.”

Louis Tétrault, Executive Director of the Association of Manitoba Bilingual Municipalities, stated: “Ensuring the implementation of municipal services in French for the citizens of Manitoba’s bilingual municipalities is at the very heart of the AMBM’s mission. Ms Boyd has strongly encouraged and supported the CPEF initiative. The CPEFs provide services and resources in French that are key to the growth and development of our regions. Congratulations to Ms Boyd who, through her interest and commitment, has made an enormous contribution to the vitality and development of Manitoba’s bilingual communities.”

Members of the general public and public sector employees at the federal, provincial and municipal level were invited to submit nominations for the Prix Ronald-Duhamel – Ronald Duhamel Award by January 31, 2013.

The award ceremony was held during the 18th Ministerial Conference on the Canadian Francophonie hosted by Manitoba this year. Ms Boyd is the fifth recipient of the award since it was created.

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The Province of Manitoba is distributing this press release on behalf of the governments of Canada and Manitoba, the Société franco-manitobaine and the Manitoba Association of Bilingual Municipalities (AMBM).